In the Light of Day
by Sleepyreader13
Summary: Maddie knows about Danny and his secrets after listening to those telling sounds in the dark, but what will happen when another unknown fragment of his secret comes crashing into the light of day. Stand alone sequel to "Sounds in the Dark" and rated for a reason.
1. Travel

A/N- Hey guys! This is the sequel to Sounds in the Dark!

For all of you guys that haven't read that, you will be able to understand this, but there are going to be some instances where you might be a little bit confused about what's boing on if you haven't read it.

That being said, I hope you enjoy this.

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Thanks to the amazing people who beta-ed this for me! IceDragon19 and Pheek, you guys are amazing.

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Summary- Maddie knows all about Danny and his secret after hearing those sounds in the dark, but what will she do when another faucet of his life comes into the light of day? Sequel to Sounds in the Dark.

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Disclaimer- If you recognize it, I don't own it.

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To the people on the streets below her she would just be a speck, a small black blip in the sky,- a bird maybe, or a jet, not a glowing, fleeing girl- and she wanted to keep it that way.

If they couldn't see her, neither could Vlad. At least, that's what she told herself.

She couldn't let Vlad catch her, not again.

She shuddered, dropping a few feet as she tried to regain her composure. She knew she wasn't going to last long, she knew her body was too hurt to heal on its own, she knew she needed help. She knew she was weak, and she knew that it wasn't going to be long before she broke down. She needed to get there before that happened. She had to. She took a breath of the thin, clean air and flew on, trying to keep the images, the feelings, from resurfacing. She swallowed, putting on a burst of speed, and hoped she could at least get to Danny before Vlad found her again.

Or before she broke.

Danny could save her. She had to get to Danny before Vlad got to her; she didn't think she could handle what would happen if she didn't.

Her breathing hitched and her memories started to come back, started to pull her away from reality.

_No. _She thought. _I'm too far up to get swept into a flashback. _

She knew that this was only partially true, that the rest of the truth was hidden in the fact that she didn't think she could handle remembering, feeling, what happened.

She didn't think she could handle feeling beaten again, feeling so utterly broken.

She had to get to Danny, she had to. She couldn't let it happen again.

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Tell me what'cha thought? Comments, suggestions, anything!

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It's gonna take a while before the next update , but that's because school starts and so does ball season and I'm not gonna have a whole lot of time. Give me until October, and then I'll have a more stable update schedule.

That doesn't mean it's gonna take months for me to post, just don't expect a chapter every week.

Sorry!


	2. Falling

A/N- It hasn't been as long as I thought it'd be, but then again, life took a U turn on me and I've would up with more free time that I though I'd have in years. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this!

The part that's in all italics is a memory, just so you know.

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And I want to send a huge thanks to Pheek and IceDragon19 for beta-ing this. You wouldn't have gotten it for weeks if it hadn't been for them. =]

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If you recognize it, I don't own it.

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"Danny, quit stressing dude, maybe it was just a camera," Tucker reassured, rapidly tapping a stylus to his PDA.

I wondered if I could shove him off the sidewalk and make it look like an accident, but I'd probably need him later when we patroled.

"Yeah," Sam agreed, pulling me out of my pointed thoughts and threading her fingers through mine, giving them a slight squeeze. "It's been three weeks. Maybe it was just a way to keep an eye on you."

Not that the fact that Vlad wanted to keep an eye on me made me feel any better about any of this. The last time I'd found a camera like that, I'd ended up in a fight that wiped me out for nearly a week.

But that's a story for another day.

"But that's the thing! It's been three weeks! Do you know what Vlad could have done in three weeks?" I huffed, agitated

I know they hadn't seen what I'd seen, hadn't been in his lab for more than the time needed for a rescue mission, but they'd seen what it'd done to me. They'd met Dani! Why didn't they see how bad this was?

In all honesty, I had been pretty jumpy lately, but I figured I had an excuse. I mean, it's not every day you find a camera from your arch-enemy just lying around in your house spying on you. It'd make anyone nervous, but it being Vlad, it downright scared me.

I knew what Vlad was capable of; I'd been in his hands far too many times to think that whatever was going on was good.

"Look man, you don't have to snap at us. We get it, you're nervous, but we're not going to be able to do anything about it until something happens. We don't even know if something's going to happen." Tucker pointed out, still not looking up from his device.

I was surprised he took the turn we came up on he was so focused on the thing. I don't think he would have noticed if I'd shoved him off the sidewalk.

I sighed, letting go of Sam's hand to wrap my arm around her waist. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I'd be worried too if I were you. Heck, I'm worried myself." Sam smiled, slowing to a stop on a curb and looking out at the road going out of town.

I briefly wondered what it would be like to take that road all the way out of Amity, all the way out of the state, but then I thought of the city, my city, and the patrol I was about to go on and the thoughts disappeared.

"Thanks," I replied, pulling her closer and pressing my lips to her hair before pulling away.

Despite the nervousness that swept through me at the thought of Vlad and the camera, I knew I had a job to do. I looked up at the tinged purple sky and a sense of confidence surged through me. Patrolling was something I controlled, something I knew, and no amount to evidence of Vlad could take that away.

I didn't know how different tonight would be. I had no clue.

"I'll be in the air if you need me."

I was in the air with a flash of light and a forced smile, taking to the sky while Sam and Tucker patrolled the ground. It was what we did, and I wasn't going to let a camera stop me from doing it.

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Third Person

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The people in the town thought it was a shooting star, gracing their skies with its white brilliance.

Jack Fenton thought it was one of his son's many enemies, coming to terrorize the city with their evil ways.

Maddie was so wrapped in her lab work that she didn't even know it was happening, let alone what it was.

Danny would have known what it was if he had been conscious for his own, similar falls.

Sam and Tucker were the only ones aware of what it was, the sight alone scaring them. They looked up to the air beside them to make sure Danny was still floating where he had been when they'd seen it, and they knew. There were only two ghosts in the world whose aura glowed that brightly.

Dani just closed her eyes as she fell, wishing that she had decided to fly lower because the ground looked incredibly high from where she was still hurtling downward, and that it could have been a different memory that pulled her from flight.

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_She was falling._

_Falling, falling, falling._

_She felt a blast hit her stomach, sending flames through her nerves as her skin throbbed red and searing the jumpsuit all the way up to her ribs. Her body crashed into the wall behind her, corners of bricks and wooden pieces ripping into her back and taking her breath away._

_She opened her eyes to blurry surroundings, struggling to breathe as she tried to move. Rubble piled on top of her, pinning her legs and arms to the ground, and she couldn't muster the strength to blast them away. Her powers seemed to have cut off, her core walled up inside her chest. She could feel it, but she couldn't get to it. She tried pulling her legs to her, only to result in scraped skin and torn cloth._

_She had to leave, had to get away._

_A hand closed around one of her wrists, moving the rubble off only to trap her again. She struggled, trying to hit the man she'd been running from for months – years – but it was no use._

_Her mind blanked out as a cold metal prong pushed against her chest and electricity coursed through her. It felt like fire and ice at the same time, frying her nerves and freezing her skin; numbing and piercing her brain. It stopped suddenly, but the pain didn't. It lingered, racing over her still quivering skin and she could smell the scent of burnt skin and hair._

_It hit her again at the same time as something cold clamped around her wrists, locking them together. Her body arched, her skin sizzled, and her mouth wrenched open in a soundless scream._

_Her mind swirled with a darker blackness than the night sky around her could ever hope to possess, and all she knew was that she was falling, falling._

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Danny's POV

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I'd seen shooting stars before. I'd taken pictures and videos of them and watched them fall against the black sky.

This wasn't a shooting star.

"Danny…" Sam's voice was a warning. Her eyes were locked on the bright form falling from the sky, but her face was concerned, scared.

"Danny, I think… I think that might be Danielle."

I blinked, looking at Tucker as he watched open-mouthed as the form fell.

Then his words hit me, hard, and I could feel the panic bloom.

I was off in an instant, not even slowing down to let Sam and Tucker catch up. Trees and buildings blurred around me, turning into a colorful swirl that I completely ignored, focused on the bright figure falling from the sky.

If it was her, and a part of me hoped it was while the rest prayed it wasn't, she was getting so so close to the ground.

I pushed myself faster. I had to get there, had to.

She was at the height of the tops of the buildings now, and I was still way too far away.

Falling, falling, falling.

I couldn't see her. The trees blocked the view, but I knew she'd landed.

I had to get there, had to get to her.

I broke through the tree line, almost giving myself whiplash as I stopped at the scene in front of me.

What I found would haunt me for the rest of my half life.

Dani…

She was laying there on her side, suit torn; hair matted. Her arm was at an odd angle, and one of her legs curled up awkwardly underneath her. Every inch of her skin that I could see- and through the tears in the suit, I could see a lot- was bruised or cut. She was thin, sickly thin. Her ribs showed from underneath her suit, and her skin was bloodstained.

I didn't want to know whose blood it was.

I didn't know what to do, afraid to move her in case I hurt her but knowing I couldn't just leave her there.

Something else about the terrifying sight sent my heart in my throat my stomach to my feet, it sent chills down my spine and dried my throat as I lurched forward; she wasn't moving.

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A/N- You know, I just love cliffhangers. *Smiles*

It won't be too long before the next one, promise!

Tell me how you liked it? Maybe in a review?


	3. Screaming

A/N- Yeah, it's been awhile. Sorry about that. =]

I want to say thanks to everyone that's read and reviewed. Or anyone that's even just clicked on the link. You are amazing. All of you. Every single one of you. You make may day, and you make this story so much easier to write.

Now that the gushy stuff is over...

WARNING- It's rated teen for a reason guys, and this chapter is the beginning of one of those reasons.

The block of italics is Dani's memory. If you ever see a block of memory, it is Dani's memory unless said otherwise.

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Thanks to Pheek and IceDragon19 for making this readable. =]

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If you recognize it, I don't own it. Unless it came from one of my stories.

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Danny

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Looking back, I don't know how long it took me to react; it could have been seconds, or it could have been hours. I just know that once my body unfroze, I panicked. I flew over to her, kneeling down and pressing two fingers to her cool skin. I didn't notice at first that her skin was slick, or that it was bruised; only that she had a pulse.

She had a pulse. She was alive.

It was like the weight of the word had lifted off of my shoulders, only to be replaced with one just as heavy. Because if she was still alive-she was alive!- she was in pain, and realizing how bad she looked, she was in a lot of pain. That thought sent a nervous, unwanted chill through my body. That's when I noticed the slippery, almost dry red that stained my gloves and that her skin, normally a light tan like mine, was an ugly purple.

Now that I was this close, I could see that she was moving, but it was far from reassuring. Even though her chest rose and fell, it was shallow and not nearly quick enough.

Without even thinking about what the movement could do to her already fragile frame, I picked her up. Her skin was swollen against my hands, and she was so skinny it scared me.

As if I wasn't already scared enough.

I went intangible, letting my powers wash across her as I took to the air.

I felt the city blur around me, felt the air that would have whipped against my skin flow through me like water. I cradled Dani against me, one hand under her injured legs and up supporting her back. I could feel long cuts and torn material, but I didn't slow down to check on it. She was already in bad shape, and I wasn't willing to risk making it worse by slowing down. She was breathing, I could feel it, but it didn't seem like enough.

She's laying on a table, in front of me, one of her injured hands cradled in both of mine as Mom works over her. I'm trying to ignore the fact that her wrists are raw and scabbed over.

From Mom's reactions, she's not doing well. Mom keeps making these little surprised gasps, the kind that come from Sam when I come to her with an injury that I didn't know was as bad as it really was. It isn't long until Mom gives up trying to reposition Dani's jumpsuit and just takes it off.

I'd be embarrassed, for me and for her, if I hadn't been so enraged.

It showed before, but now I could really see it. Her whole body was glowing, the way mine had with my side a couple of weeks ago, only it was brighter. It was like her whole being was focused on healing, and by the way it looked, it wasn't enough. Her ribs, now clear of all dirt and grime and cloth, were showing and looked almost broken. Her stomach, now clean, showed dark purple bruises and numerous slashes. My eyes moved upward, and I had to swallow down the lump that was constricting my airway. A thin line, mostly healed, ran from right about her navel all the way up under her underclothes, and when I looked at the top of her chest, I could just barely see two thin lines running diagonally. She'd been cut open.

I dropped Dani's hand, clenching my fingers into tight, white-knuckled fists.

Mom sees it, I can tell by the choked noise she's making. She's never met Dani before, has no connections to her. She didn't ask any questions, didn't need to as I came in shouting for her to help. I don't know if she'd sensed how much I cared about the mysterious girl now laying on her table or if she just didn't care, but this was affecting her too.

"Danny," she sounded choked, hoarse, "I hope she stays out for a while."

But because fate loves to laugh at the unfortunate, and there's no wood in the lab to knock on, it's just too much to ask.

As soon as my hand found her limp fingers, she shifted and a small groan slipped from her mouth. Her fingers clenched around mine, cutting off circulation, her groan shifting from a small noise to an all-out scream. She was writhing on the table, her abused body struggling against restraints that weren't there.

Her screaming intensified and increased, and I was almost afraid that her screech would soon morph into a ghostly wail, but it ended in an instant. Her arched body slumped against the table, her iron grip on my fingers turned into a desperate clinging, and her scream turned into pitiful whimpers.

"Dani?" I whispered, taking a hand and holding her wrist.

I want to say I was happy to see that she opened her eyes, but I wasn't. Because when she did they were glassy and farther away than I'd ever reach. She was still whimpering, still crying, but she wasn't with me, not the way I wanted.

She looked at me, but I could tell she was seeing something else.

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_Everything was foggy, the whole world blurred in a too bright way that made my head spin. I could feel something hard and cold under me, and I automatically tried to get away. "Examination table!" My mind screamed, telling me to gogogogogo and get away now. I tried. I wrenched my arms and kicked and tried to fly away. _

_And I came back with bloody, hurting wrists and shoulders and hips that protested to the slightest movement. _

_I gave another yank, trying not to show how afraid I was even though I couldn't even see through the blurry brightness, and heard a laugh that sent chills up my spine. _

_Vlad. That was the only person in the world that had a laugh that could sound so cold and mean more than a curse ever could. He was the only one I knew that would strap someone to a table and laugh while he watched them squirm. He was the only one that sent this level of pure panic through my body. _

_It was well deserved too. _

_Another set of lights flickered on, sending my head spinning into a sea of pure white. Everything hurt; nothing was concrete, the only thing I could feel was the harsh coldness of the metal at my back and the biting pain that came with my wrists and ankles. I could hear him laugh again, sending even more chills racing across my skin. _

_That's when something hit me in the stomach, knocking my breath away, and I came crashing painfully back to reality. _

_Sharp edges and angles that were so familiar in the worst way possible. I'd been here before, on this table, staring up at this same ceiling, and it had all been the stuff of nightmares. His laughter that didn't seem to stop now only proved that this would be so much worse. _

_I yanked again, this time checking all the escape routes I knew existed, but it was no use. I just succeeded in staining the wrists of my jumpsuit a deep crimson. I'm rewarded with another cold laugh. _

_He steps forward, and I can see his face now. He's not in ghost form, like I expected him to be, he looks like he'll be going to the office- like this is just another day of being Mayor. _

_The excited smile on his face shows me it's not even close. _

_His suit is perfectly pressed, not a silver grey hair on his head is out of place, but he's crazier than anyone I've ever met. _

_And that's before I notice the scalpel in his hand. It's gleaming in the painful brightness, and it's beautiful in a sick, cruel way. It also sends a jolt of panic sweeping through me. _

_I'm too scared to even struggle now as I look into those cold slate eyes. His eyes hold that same crazy excitement that his smile does, and the look chills my core. _

"_What's so funny?" I wish it would have been clearer, bolder, but it came out a hoarse croak, scared and feeble as I am. _

"_You, my dear." He laughs, stepping so close now that he's standing right over me and I can smell the expensive cologne that rolls off him in waves. _

_He steps so close that I can see that the scalpel is as smooth as glass. _

_Something in his face changes, like someone has flicked a switch. His eyes still hold that excited look, but it's accompanied by determination now, and his smile's been replaced by pursed lips. _

"_I need something from you, Danielle." He looks so woeful, so sad, but I can see that gleaming cruelty that matches his excitement. I shudder, trying to hold down the panic that's attempting to seize me. "I need to know what makes you tick." _

_I don't even have time to respond before his hand comes down at my navel. _

_The world stops. Icy fire everywhere. Sharp pain slicing through my body. His hands pulling at my skin. Pain. _

_My world's not spinning, but it feels like it should be. I'm being cut open, dissected, and all I can do is scream._

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Danny

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She's screaming again, her glassy eyes focused on something only she can see. Her hands are clenched around mine in a death grip, and I know I'm gripping back. Mom's hovering over her, making sure that she doesn't open up any cuts, but there's nothing she can do for this kind of pain.

"Vlad," It's barely even a whisper. "No!"

She screams again, and it's so full of pain and fear that I know that there's only one person that can cause it.

Skulker talking about having a boss. Skulker going after Dad. Vlad not being seen for weeks. The camera hidden in the lab. No word from Dani in weeks.

"Danny." Mom says. I look up to see that her face is tinted green, and I look down to see that my hands are enveloped in green energy. I clench my fingers together, extinguishing the icy hot plasma, and focus on Dani.

She needs me right now. She's gripping my hand again.

She won't be needing me forever, Vlad.

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A/N- Well, tell me what you think? Like it? Hate it? Wanna burn it?


	4. How He'd Play It

A/N- I'm just going to tell you now. This one is mostly fluff and filler, but the action is coming soon, I promise.

This was going to be part of a huge chapter, at least compared to what you normally see from me, but it would have taken me around another two weeks to just get the rest of it done, let alone edited and polished and all that good stuff, and I didn't want to make you guys wait forever. Sorry!

A huge thanks to IceDragon19 and Pheek for beta-ing this; you guys are amazing!

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If you recognize it, odds are it isn't mine.

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Danny

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Dani's asleep now, her eyes finally closed and her abused body settled against the table. Her breathing is even- or as even as it can be- and she has let go of my hand to curl it up next to her cheek. And it's natural sleep, which is more than we could have hoped for.

Mom's gone to find more bandages because we both know we haven't seen all of it, and we know we're going to need them. The lab, for the first time since I got here, is quiet. I can hear footsteps above me, in the kitchen, and if I really strain myself I can even hear voices, but I'm not trying. Actually, I'm trying to ignore all of them.

She's asleep now. She doesn't need me at the moment.

I stand up, floating and going intangible so I don't make any noise, and turn to face the door.

And come face to face with Sam.

It's too late to turn invisible, and by the way she's looking at me, it wouldn't have done much good anyway. She would've tracked me down. I could tell by her eyes; she knew exactly what I was planning. She stood there, tense, and I knew I had a decision to make. I could just leave. Fly away and not even acknowledge that fact that I'd seen her, which would hurt me as badly as it would hurt her. Or I could stop. I could put it off, I could wait.

She knew I'd never be able to resist her.

I felt my power slide off my skin, felt the cold that came with intangibility disappear. I let myself drop to the floor, the _thunk_ of my shoes hitting the metal shattering the almost silence. I hold my hands out to her and she smiles that sad smile and walks forward.

I can't believe how much of a relief it is to have her safe and warm and with me. I think she feels that way too because she's clinging to me as tightly as I am to her.

"Your mom told me all that she knew, but she doesn't know halfa medicine like I do," Sam whispered, and I felt her tilt her head to get a look at Dani.

"I don't want her to have to know it like you do, honestly," I murmured, looking down at her.

"Me neither."

I heard Dani move behind me, and it took everything I had not to sprint back to her side, but in a second she was settled and breathing normally again.

"Danny?" Sam's voice was tight.

"Hmmm?"

"What were you about to do when you turned around?" she asked, tucking herself back into my chest.

Oh no.

She knows me better than anyone in the world, and in situations like this, it's not a good thing.

"Nothing, Sam. Getting up and trying to wake her," I lied, but it didn't even sound believable to my ears.

"Danny… Don't lie to me."

I wasn't…. Not really. But she knows me too well to know that's all I was doing. She knows me way too well for that.

"You know good and well what I was doing, Sam. Don't pretend to be surprised either. You know," I said, and I felt my voice rising even though I was trying _so hard _to keep it quiet.

She tightens her arms around me. "You can't go after him."

What?

"Why not?" I want to yell it, but seeing as Dani is finally sleeping and I won't wake her up, I'm stuck whisper yelling it. "Mom told you what happened to her! He tortured her; he _cut her open_! We don't even know all of it yet, and it's already bad, Sam."

Her arms are still around me, mine are still snaked around her waist, and we're barely centimeters from each other, but it feels like a chasm.

"I know, Danny, but-"

"Why can't I go after him, Sam? He deserves it, and it's my fault anyway." Because he never would have done this to her if he didn't want something from me. He couldn't get my family that lives with me, so he goes after her.

Sam goes absolutely rigid in my arms. Her hands ball into fists against my back. Her violet eyes light up with a burning fire.

"It's not your fault. None of this is your fault." She grabs my chin, holding my face barely centimeters from her scorching eyes.

It hurts more than any wound, but she's wrong.

"Sam," I'm choking, on air or pain or something. "Yes, it is."

"No, it's not, and even if it was, you _can't _go." There's an intensity in her voice, a pressure in her face. She's not happy about this either, but she's not seeing it like I am.

"Why can't I, Sam? Why can't I go after him? Why can't I fly off right now? She's been _cut open_! She's been _tortured_! Why can't I go after him!?" I wanted to yell it, but I could hear Dani's breathing and I had to settle for a harsh whisper.

All the tension seemed to drain from her, and something like fear replaced it. "Because that's what he wants, Danny. He wants you to get mad; he wants you to come to him. He wants you to play right into his hands. You _can't go, _Danny."

She was right. I didn't realize it until now, but she's exactly right. That's just like Vlad to play it like that.

I wanted to fight with her, I wanted to shake my head and get mad and not believe a word she was saying, but she was right. Every part of her fight was correct, and she knew she was. I felt the tension leave my limbs, but I still wanted to go. I still wanted to get my hands on him for doing this to Dani.

She could see that.

"What if Dani needed you? What if you weren't here for her?" she questioned, looking over my shoulder again.

What if I wasn't here? I… couldn't do that. I couldn't leave her, not as vulnerable as she is. I would never forgive myself.

"I know. I don't like it though" I sighed as she pulled herself closer to me, snuggling into my chest.

"I know you don't. I don't either."

And she didn't. I knew her well enough to know that.

I also knew that, when the time came, she'd be going after Vlad with me. The look on her face as she watched Dani was proof enough of that.

We didn't have much time to talk about it though, because not a minute later I could hear Dani waking up.

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A/N- Sorry it's a filler, and that it's short. Hope you liked it anyways.

Just wondering, but what would you guys like to see happen? It's not really going to change the story a whole awful lot, but it'll be helpful. Tell me, please?


	5. Conscious

A/N- I know it's been a while, but life's busy. Sorry. If I could, I would spend all day at my computer writing this for you, but it's not that easy. I actually have to go to high school and all. Everyone has to at some point. I'm busy.

On the bright side, I have most of next week off of school, so that means I get to write more! Yay!

You guys are amazing. 66 Reviews. It blows me away. I love you guys! =]

This one is kinda a filler, but since it keys to the next scene, you still need to read it.

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I want to give a HUGE thank you to Pheek and IceDragon19 who helped beta this. When I first looked at it, it didn't look this good. Trust me. They are amazing.

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If you recognize it, it's more than likely that I don't own it.

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Danny

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It was like she was trying to wake up and still fighting consciousness with everything in her, like she was purposefully torturing me.

Her hands would flutter against mine, her eyelids would clench and relax as if she was experiencing a nightmare, her limbs would give small, restless shakes. I could tell she was murmuring something, but it was too low and unintelligible for me to make out. And she still hadn't opened her eyes.

Sam slipped her fingers into the hand that wasn't occupied by Dani's still fingers. "She'll wake up. You know she will."

I could tell by her voice that she was almost as tense as I was, but was trying to hide it. I loved her more for it.

Her words, while reassuring, were not something one would expect to be said when comforting someone. There was no "she'll be okay" or "I'm sure she's fine"; Sam was just too honest for that. You could tell by looking at the state her bandaged body was in that she wasn't fine.

I still appreciated the way her hand was squeezing mine. If anything, it proved that she was with me and close and _okay._

"Do you think we need to get my Mom? You know, in case… there's something wrong," I asked, looking up at Sam. I didn't want to think about her being anything but okay, but it was hard with half her body wrapped in stained bandages.

Her eyes didn't leave Dani's face. "I'll go get her."

She squeezed my hand, dropped a kiss on my cheek, and I could hear her heavy boots clunk up the metal stairs.

I refocused on Dani's face, trying to see any signs of improvement or change. Her bruises were a light yellow; her cuts had all closed into puckered, red lines; and her breathing had started to even earlier, hinting that her ribs were finally healing, but she still hadn't changed back. We had brushed out her hair and cleaned her up, but none of that changed the fact that her hair was still a startling shade of white, her skin still put off an unearthly white-green glow, or that beneath her eyelids, and her eyes were still acid green.

I was afraid to find out why.

Honestly, I didn't know what I was more afraid of: finding out just how bad the physical damage was, or seeing how mentally scarred she was from this. I'd been through my fair share of fights and bad memories, and I know just how much something like this can haunt you. I had hoped she would never have to find out.

I felt her fingers clench around mine, her face scrunching up and her body tensing. "Mmmmm."

"Dani?" I was halfway out of my seat and hovering over her before she slumped against the table.

"Hurts…" she whispered, her voice hoarse and raspy.

She's waking up. Do I get Mom? Do I yell for Sam?

"Dani, are you awake?" She tried to move, and as little as I know about medical condition and just hurt she was, I knew this was a bad thing.

"You need to stay still." I laid my hand against an unblemished part of her shoulder to keep her from moving, hoping not to bring back any memories.

I feel her body tense with fear under my hand. Her eyes are clenched tightly and she wrenched her hand away from mine.

"Danielle?" I felt like someone's choking me. She's in pain and she's scared and it's tearing me apart.

She opens her eyes, a dull radioactive green that would look unnatural without the white hair falling in her face, but aren't the bright green that I wanted- remembered. "Danny?"

* * *

Dani

* * *

"Danny?"

The pain in my body dulled. The dizzying, nauseating feeling that made my head swim faded. The bright lights that had blinded me barely seconds before weren't bright enough to light up his face, which I had zeroed in on.

Danny.

I'd made it. I'd actually made it.

I was safe. Finally, completely safe.

The relief was so sudden and so powerful that it would have knocked me over if I hadn't already been lying down. I could feel the warmth that had nothing to do with flame wash over my body, and my eyes stung. My throat constricted. My chest tightened.

Danny was standing there, right in front of me.

I'd made it. I was safe.

I wasn't aware I was crying until Danny's hand stopped hovering over me and his thumb slide over my cheek, coming away wet and glistening. His eyes flashed with something that I'd only seen once before, and it was only when he thought I'd died.

I tried to sit up, to do something, to reassure him in some way, but the burning, tearing pain that encased my whole body wouldn't let me. The little gasp that tore its way through my lips was more than I had wanted to him to hear.

His whole face flashed with that emotion, "Dani…"

That concern, that's what did me in. It broke me, right then and there.

I'd been running for days, running from Vlad and pain and mental torture. Can you blame me for it?

I hadn't heard affection –the true kind - for weeks, and definitely not concern. It meant I was okay, it meant I was safe. It meant I'd made it.

The dam that had kept me from collapsing since I'd escaped broke, and the tears I'd been holding back for days came rushing back with the force of a flood. Flashes of memory, phantom and real pain twisted together in a hailstorm of feeling, words that both hurt and reassured swirled through my mind, and mental picture imprinted themselves on my brain as I finally, _finally_ let myself go.

I could feel arms lift me up, wrap around me. Pain flashed against my nerves, the movement making it hard to breathe, but I didn't care. I was crying, bawling my eyes out, and I couldn't stop it. There were fingers gliding through my hair and the relief that I was _here _was enough for me not to care. My mind tried to pull me into a memory, tried to reel me into a flashback that I didn't want to exist, but I wouldn't let it. I couldn't forget though, not with the real pain slicing into me and the safe feeling warming my body.

I let myself feel; for the first time in over two weeks, I let myself cry.

"Oh, Dani..." he whispered, barely heard over my tears and harsh breathing.

I attempted to pull myself together. I tried.

"It's going to be okay. I promise. Come on. It'll be alright." I could feel his hand on my back, rubbing soothing circles, and despite the fact that the skin wasn't healed and it hurt like crazy, I was okay with that.

It meant that I'd made it.

It took a while, several minutes of agonizing coughs and quiet hiccupping cries, but I finally calmed down enough that I could control my breathing.

The tears though, that was another story. I couldn't stop the tears from trailing down my face, couldn't help the fact that my eyes were watering, but I had an excuse.

You'd cry too.

"Th-thanks-s," I choked out, my voice whispery and hoarse and not at all recognizable.

He smiled at me; a forced, sad smile, but a smile nonetheless.

"Anytime."

Then there was a series of footsteps. A soft footfall that suggested someone light. The same footsteps Vlad has.

Closer, closer.

No, not again.

No. Calm down, Dani. You escaped. You're okay. You're safe. It's not Vlad.

"Danny?" It's a woman's voice, curious and questioning.

It's not Vlad, Dani. Not Vlad.

"Mom, don't-" Danny yells from beside me, and something in his voice almost scares me. It's cautious and almost scared.

"What?"

And she steps into the room.

I don't see anything other than the goggles and the gun and dagger strapped at her side before it sets off a memory.

* * *

A/N - What're thinking about this? What'd you think's gonna happen?

Like it? Hate it? Wanna give me feedback?


	6. Fault

__A/N- Yes, I know it's been long time, but life sucks. The next chapter should be out soon though, holiday and time and stuff.

Finals and doctors and parties and more finals and just school in general. It sucks. Sorry it's taken so long.

But, I really like this chapter.

* * *

I want to say a HUGE thanks to IceDragon19 and Pheek for Beta-ing this for me. You can thank them for this being as good as it is.

* * *

If you recognize it, it's highly likely that I don't own it.

* * *

_Red glowing eyes appeared out of the darkness, floating closer and closer in the inky blackness. It sent a shiver over my already throbbing body, making my skin tingle with an unpleasant spark that meant something that my conscious mind told me to run from._

_I clenched my fists, gritting my teeth against the pain that the fear sent through me. Every bone in my body hurt, the muscles felt stretched and loose and pained, my head throbbed and ached and my vision was blurry, but I refused to let him think he'd broken me. He wouldn't get that satisfaction._

_"You know," his voice was mild and soft, distinctly different from the ghastly vision of his eyes. "You can blame dear Daniel for this."_

_I watched him float forward, and I looked on as his eyes moved closer to me._

_"It's true, of course. I would have had no need to do this if he had just simply not existed, and you would have been long past destabilized if he hadn't been the hero that he is. He really should have known better."_

_And then he laughed, long and loud and cruel. It rang out in the metal lab, and it perfectly fit the idea of what he was, what his eyes showed._

_I wanted to yell, to shout and scream and fight, but I couldn't find the energy in me. I settled for watching his crimson eyes float closer and closer to me._

_His voice, no matter how soft and crooning and strong, would never convince me it was anyone's fault other than his, let alone Danny's._

_"This… isn't anyone's fault… but yours," I breathed, wishing my voice was stronger._

_He laughed again, floating to the edge of the table and looking at me with those red eyes that made me want to run._

_"You can blame whoever you please, but dear, it won't help you any now." He said, and I heard rather than saw the blade come near me._

_I clenched my teeth together, pushing my nails into my palms. He wouldn't see me break._

_"I could've just taken you out, you know. A single shot and you would've been mine and there would be no struggling or noise. A single shot and that would've been all. Of course, I didn't need that kind of test results. I need the kind you can feel."_

_I felt the tip of the blade in his hand graze my stomach, right above my navel, and it took everything I had not to lose it right then._

_"Of course, I would have gotten it from Daniel, but he's too much trouble to capture. I can only hope a cloned result will work. Of course, it might not be good enough. I just hope this isn't all a waste."_

_Cloned. Not good enough. A waste of time._

_The words hurt almost as much as the knife did._

* * *

Danny

* * *

Dani's fingers were clenched around one of my hands, her arms shaking; sweat beading along her skin. My other hand was carding through her hair, ghosting over her face, wiping away rampant tears. It was all I could do, but it didn't feel like enough.

Not when, if you traced it back, this was my fault.

Mom was standing beside me, her hands keeping Dani from moving and her breath coming in short spurts. She sounded pained, physically and mentally.

And, honestly, Dani sounded worse.

Whatever memory Mom had brought back, it wasn't a good one.

"Is there a reason why you brought your _weapons _down here?" I asked, squeezing on Dani's hand.

She huffed, frowning. "There was a ghost in the street. Sam, Tucker and your father are handling it now."

I sucked in a breath. My hand paused above Dani's white-why hadn't she changed back?-hair. "What?"

Mom looked up at me, her whole face tense in the bright lighting of the lab. "There was a ghost. The one in pajama's. I left because Sam said she had it covered, and by the way he was already out cold, I figured she did."

Oh. Klemper. Of course she had it covered. I'd be worried if her and Tucker didn't.

But, it explained the weapons. She was still… not as familiar with my enemies as my team was, even though I was trying to incorporate her and Dad more. And, she insisted on bringing weapons to every fight instead of letting my powers and Sam's fighting abilities handle the lower level ghosts.

I looked down at the black belt still slung around her waist.

"Is there any way that you can get rid of your… stuff before she comes back?" I asked.

I had no desire to scare Dani any more than we already had.

She paused in her movements, blinked at me once, and then reached down and unsnapped the belt and threw it in a nearby drawer.

"Was it me that set this off?" she asked, running her hand over Dani's shaking arm. I couldn't see her eyes, but her voice held a nervous anxiety that made me bite my lip.

"I don't know, Mom." I said. "It could have been anything; the red goggles, the weapons, the fact that Vlad has a hologram of you. It could've just been your facial expression. We won't know till she comes back to."

She took a deep breath, her mouth opening like she wanted to say something.

"Sam mentioned her name was Dani…" Mom started, eyes flickering over to rest on me. "Would this happen to be the Dani you mentioned a while ago? Your clone?"

Of course, she'd remember that. It wasn't even my secret. Not something I should have blurted out that night.

I sighed, "Yeah. This is her. Not a very good way to meet her, but this is Dani."

She looked at her critically, and suddenly I felt protective, wanting more than anything to hide her broken form from Mom.

"She looks like you."

I refrained from mentioning that of course she looked like me, she's my clone. "We know."

All I got was an odd look.

I squeezed Dani's hand in mine, my heart breaking as I wiped at a tear running down her face, and hoped that this flashback was almost over.

"How often do you get to see her?" Mom questioned.

"She comes and goes. It's been more frequent lately, she'll come visit every couple weeks, crash out either in my room or at Sam's or Valerie's, then she goes back to where ever she needs to be. She won't let me talk her into staying. She roams, and she's still developing powers and trying to catch up with her age, but she has Frostbite and Pandora. And me, if she'd ever let me help."

Mom furrowed her eyebrows, looking confused. "If she crashes out in your room, how've we never seen or heard her?"

She hadn't noticed that I was half ghost until a couple weeks ago, and that was only after I'd told her. It wasn't all that hard to hide Dani when we normally have to hide a much larger secret. Of course, I wasn't going to say that. "She wanted to stay hidden just as much as I did. She never really wanted to be found. That and she stayed most of the nights at Val's, even if she is more comfortable with me."

"Why Valerie?" Mom asked.

I'm letting way to much slip lately, but I really hate keeping secrets anymore. "She knows Dani. She's known her since the beginning."

Dani was really crying now, and it killed me to not be able to shake her awake.

Mom's hand crept up to brush some of her white hair out of her face. "Have you known her since she was… since she was created?"

I felt my fingers and arms tense, my jaw clenching. I looked up at Mom, but she was busy soothing Dani to notice.

"She's not just some random clone, Mom." I ground out.

She looked up at me, her eyes holding something I couldn't put my finger on. After a second, she gave me a small smile. "I know that. I can _see it_, Danny."

There was a silence after that, the only noises being our breathing and Dani's reactions to her memories.

"So, she's kind of like my daughter then, isn't she, if she's a clone of you and all?" Mom realized suddenly, eyes wide.

This is one of the reasons why I hadn't given her the full story until now.

"That's up to you, Mom. Biologically, genetically, yes, she's your daughter. You'll have to talk to her about that and whether that's what she wants to do and everything else after… after all of this is over," I said, looking down at Dani.

Just in time to see her open her eyes.

Her voice was choppy and hoarse, but her eyes were bright. "Really?"

* * *

And there's the end of that chapter. You like it?

*Laughs evilly*

Thanksfully, I have Christmas break from tomorrow until January, so I have time to write.


	7. Similar

A/N- I just want everyone to know that I feel really horrible about this taking forever... Sorry, but life got really hectic for a while, which left me with no free time and even less inspiration to write with. It's been... crazy lately, and I'm sorry.

I hope this chapter makes up for it!

You guys have been amazing! 97 reviews! You guys are... I couldn't have asked for better fans. Thank you!

* * *

I want to give a huge thanks to Pheek and IceDragon19! You guys are amazing, and this story would not be half of what it is without you.

* * *

If you recognize it, chances are, I don't own it.

* * *

The flashback faded slowly, my senses gradually coming back to reality. The lights dimmed from brilliant white to the red glow of light filtering through my closed eyelids. The restraints changed slowly from metal clamps to something warm and giving. The pain started ebbing away, from unbearable to just a phantom ache and the pain from injuries that my superhuman healing had yet to heal. The sounds echoing around in my head lulled, fading from screams to soft voices that I could tell came from above me.

But it didn't stop the tears I could feel trickling down my cheeks. The memory was still too fresh and _there _for the tears to stop. I felt a warm hand brush hair out of my face, fingers gentle as they lingered around the hair at my ear.

"Have you known her since she was… since she was created?" an unfamiliar voice said, the same one that had yelled for Danny.

Created? She knew? Oh God, what did she-?

_Calm down, Dani, she won't hurt you, Danny won't let her. _

I felt fingers tighten around my hand, on my arm, and it took everything in me not to recoil from the touch.

_They won't hurt you. _

While not unwelcome, it was definitely surprising to my affection-deprived senses.

"She's not just some random clone, Mom." Danny said from beside me, his voice turning hard. I hadn't heard his voice take on that razor-sharp edge since we'd last faced off against Vlad together. His voice held something soft too, something that said that to him, I wasn't just anybody.

Not just a random clone.

Suddenly, the tears rolling down my face weren't just from the pain. I could feel Danny's hand against my bruised cheek, wiping away tears that I couldn't seem to keep at bay, and I could feel the relief wash through me again. I was here, and even if the memories just kept coming back, I was safe.

"So, she's kind of like my daughter then, isn't she, if she's your clone and all?" Danny's mom said, and the words knocked the air out of my lungs like a punch to the chest. She knew I was a clone? Just a copy? Since when did they know?

Her daughter.

Did she really mean-?

Danny sighed above me, and I pictured his face in my mind. Blue eyes looking at me instead of his mother, mouth set in that thin line but still managing to look tired too. His shoulders slumped like he hadn't slept in days, dark circles under his eyes. I know he looked as tired and as frustrated as he sounded.

"That's up to you, Mom." he said, "Biologically, genetically, yes, she's your daughter. You'll have to talk to her about that and whether that's what she wants to do and everything else after… after all of this is over."

I don't know if it was the surprise or the fact that the memory had almost completely faded, but I was able to wrench my eyes open, the salty tears stopping if just for now. Danny was looking at me, his blue eyes wide and relieved and concerned all at the same time.

"Really?" I asked, not sure if I was asking about the daughter comment or the idea that I wasn't just a clone, but very sure about the fact that my voice was way too weak and hoarse for my liking.

Danny smiled down at me, his eyes concerned and happy all at the same time. He opened his mouth to speak, but his mom beat him to it.

"How are you feeling, Dani?" Danny's mom asked, drawing my attention away from her son.

At some point she had taken her hood down, revealing red hair and a kind face. But it was familiar, all too familiar, and I had to bite down on the fear that tried to rise up and pull into another pain-filled memory I would much rather forget.

_She's not going to hurt you. Just because Vlad has a hologram of her doesn't mean she going to hurt you. _

I must've flinched or frowned or something because her eyes flashed with something like guilt and she backed up a bit, sending me a reassuring smile. Danny's hand tensed on my arm, but whether it was because of my reaction to his mom or my lack of an answer I didn't know.

"I'm fine, Mrs. Fenton." I said, sending what I hoped was a smile at her.

That's when I tried to sit up and my act of feeling fine was erased immediately.

Not even Danny's helping hands could help as my arms wobbled. Head-spinning agony ripped its way up from my left elbow and into my shoulder to spread like wildfire along my skin while the muscles in my right arm were so stiff and unused that it made the entire appendage practically useless. Cuts stretched, bruises protested, and my body gave, sending me falling back onto the table's surface despite Danny's firm grasp on my arm. I felt the cuts along my back reopen, the shock sending pain through my ribs and chest, the air being knocked out of my lungs for the second time in minutes. I couldn't help the gasp that was torn from me or the tears that formed in my eyes.

"Dani?" Mrs. Fenton's voice questioned from much closer to me, and I could hear someone rummaging through something.

I opened my mouth, the words spilling from my lips before I had a chance to stop them. "It hurts."

"I know," Danny said soothingly, his fingers gently checking the back of my head, presumably for knots. "Where's it hurt the most."

_Everywhere. _ I thought, biting my lip. Swallowing past the lump rising in my throat, I force out, "My arm."

His mom is standing beside him, and I watch as he takes my right arm and holds it up to unwrap the bandage there, every bruise visible in the light. I notice that my elbow is almost black, worse than any other bruise on my arms. I hiss as Maddie probes it lightly, making the entire appendage throb, and she draws back, reaching for the bandage that one of them have laid beside me.

"It's not broken, just badly sprained. You got very lucky." She said, wrapping the bandage around my elbow and snapping a clasp onto the material.

Lucky? Since when have I _ever _been lucky?

"Mom, I don't think…" he cuts off.

"I don't think I'm someone you would normally count as lucky, Mrs. Fenton."

She seems to be shocked, her eyes darting to mine and sending me that apologetic look that I've seen from Danny millions of times, and I force a smile back at her. The silence that follows is broken only by our quiet breathing, the muffled sounds of bandaging, and footsteps from above us, but I'm pretty sure only Danny and I can hear those. His mom is the one that eventually breaks that silence. "You can call me Maddie, you know."

Tearing my eyes away from where she is bandaging up some cut on my arm, I blink at her.

This time, I don't have to force the smile that tugs at my lips, and she grins as she adjusts the last of the bandages.

"If Danny is anything to judge by," I hear Danny snort, "then your arm should be perfectly fine in about three days."

Wiggling the fingers of my right hand, I look up at her. "That's definitely a relief."

She frowns, and I can tell she doesn't want to bring whatever is on her mind up. "Dani, I'm not saying that you're going to be completely healed in three days. As much as I wish that was the case, whatever it is that you went through, it's not going to just go away. Your body's going to need time to heal."

She doesn't mention that my mind's going to take time to heal too, but I understand it as plainly as if she'd said it.

"Dani," Danny's eyes are closed, and I have a feeling that whatever he's about to say is going to hurt us both. "Who did this to you?"

He opens his eyes and I can see that he knows, or at least guesses.

The name hurts as it leaves my lips. "Vlad."

His fingers clench, his muscles tense, and for a moment I honestly think that he's going to fly off right this moment, just to confront him, but then he relaxes. He doesn't seem happy about it; the farthest thing from happy comes to mind when I look at him, but he stays where he is.

Maddie's hand tenses where it's laying on my arm and her eyes are narrowed into slits. I look back at her son.

"Danny?"

He clenches his fists, and I see his eyes glow green before calms down and looks back at me. "Did he… Is he the cause of… all of it?"

I swallow, and, not trusting my already hoarse voice, nod.

He closes his eyes, but I can see him fighting not let his powers take control. I can see it on his face, and I glance at his hands. I'm almost surprised that they aren't alight with green energy.

Which reminds me, I haven't changed back since Vlad's. Too much pain coursing through my body to even fathom going through… _that_ while human, so I had stayed ghost, something that was more draining that I had ever thought possible, but it had kept me sane.

Or, at least, as sane as you can be after that.

So, keeping my eyes on Danny, I reached into my core, letting the rings take shape around me and the transformation began. The feeling of cool-warm water washing over me settled, and I glance up to see black hair falling away from my face, and I know Danny's looking into exact copies of his own eyes.

Maddie gasped, and I jumped, having momentarily forgotten she was standing there. I looked at her, and I can tell she was seeing me, really seeing me, for the first time. She blinked blue-purple eyes at me, examining my face with something like awe.

"You two look," she swallows, and I can see her coming to terms with… something, "extremely alike."

I smiled at her, glancing at Danny, who winked at me before turning back to his mom.

"Well, we do come from the same DNA," he quips teasingly, but I can tell he's trying to give his mom time to process it all.

The cold chill didn't run along my spine like it normally does and my ghost sense didn't go off, but something in me told me to look up, and look up _now. _

Looking past Danny, who is following my gaze, at the stairs that his mom came down, I search for what it is that my senses say to look for. Not a moment later, it happens. The door is thrown open, the metal slamming against the wall in an almighty _CRASH!_ and a figure steps through.

It's Tucker, holding up a large silver gun that's pointed straight towards us.

His normally blue-green eyes are glowing red.

* * *

Did someone say evil cliffie, or was that just me?


	8. Little Badger

A/N- I really hope you like this one, considering I absolutely loved writing. It's probably my favorite chapter thus far.

We made it to a hundred! *Flails, grinning* You guys are amazing. You're reviews are what inspire me to write this, and I appreciate every single review I receive. Thanks for everything guys! =]

* * *

Disclaimer- If you recognize it, it's highly likely that I don't own it.

* * *

I want to send a _huge _thanks to IceDragon19 and Pheek, who have been amazing betas.

* * *

The brilliant white rings flashed into existence faster than lighting, confidence shooting through me as I realized just what tactic whoever this is was trying to use. Overshadowing people? Did they not realize I could just blast them out without even _touching_ my best friend—_calm down, Danny, they haven't hurt him. _

I didn't have to look down to know that my booted feet were floating inches above the ground, or that there was already green energy pooled in my palms. I felt the energy surging from my core, powering the blasts in my hands so that they shone acid green in the dim lighting and even my aura brightened. I could hear shuffling behind me, and I could only hope Mom had thought to get Dani as far away from this as possible.

Whoever this was, witnessing a fight was the last thing she needed right now. But, I didn't have time to think about that, Tucker's hands were already tight on the gun's handle, his fingers twitching over the trigger, and I could see it in the red glow of his eyes that he meant business.

Even when he was possessed, when someone else was using his body, I could still read him like a book.

I lunged forward, allowing more and more of my power to pour into the blasts in my hands, and aimed directly at his chest, smirking as I imagined whatever idiot enemy had decided to use overshadowing as a fighting technique falling out of his body and leaving him here to fight the ghost with me.

Before I could hit him though, he had moved swiftly out of the way, pointing the gun straight at me, which was odd considering he was normally the slowest of all of my team. I doubled back around, glad I hadn't decided to shoot the energy at him. I didn't like the idea of hitting one of the inventions and it exploding.

I knew he saw the power in my palms condense, burning brighter. His eyes showed it. I glared.

He opened his mouth, his red eyes glowing in a sinister way that made my skin crawl. "I wouldn't do that, Daniel."

It was Vlad's voice that came out of Tucker's mouth. He hadn't even tried to hide it. My friend's normally happy eyes were burning with a malicious glee that looked odd and dangerous on his face and made my skin crawl and my blood boil at the same time. I heard the gasp from behind me, choking on air as I realized what this must be like for Dani, and stiffened.

I could see her in my mind. Her now-blue eyes widened and scared—hopefully not glazed with memory. Her lips trembling as she sucked in breath that wasn't enough. Her hands clenching on Mom's arms as she tried to get off the table and out of the way. I knew that there would be defiance there too, and anger, but it would be buried under all the shock and pain and memory that he had inflicted on her.

He wouldn't get away with this.

"Why shouldn't I, Fruitloop? Why shouldn't I blast you all the way from here to Wisconsin? I thought you were done using teenagers as pawns." I sneered, forgoing the normally flippant tone that all my fights seemed to include and just trying not to lose my head.

He cocked the gun in his hand, and I could hear the mechanics in it whirring, readying itself for a blast. I fought not to turn around at the ragged breathing behind me. "I thought your friends meant more to you, Daniel. Or, has your loyalty left you so soon?"

"Loyalty's never been my problem." I growled, and I could feel the energy burning around my fingers. "But, my blast wouldn't hurt him, Vlad. It'd just hit you. I know you've seen how _easy _it is to pull someone out of an overshadowed person."

Tucker's face smiled, but it wasn't a smile that had ever been worn on his face before. It was cold, cruel, and one that thrived on pain and the misery of others. It was a smile that looked good on the Devil, and even more natural on Vlad. There was more shuffling behind me, although I had no idea what they were doing. I almost hoped Mom would just grab Dani and take off into the Ghost Zone, but I somehow doubted that. I really hoped that Dani wasn't up and moving, even though I knew there wasn't many more options.

"Oh, it wouldn't hurt me at all, Daniel. This body though," Vlad made a show of examining Tucker's limbs, using the familiar face to send a sneer my way, "would be damaged _immensely._"

He laughed, and chills erupted up my spine at the sound of that evil cackle coming from the throat of my best friend. _He wouldn't get away with this, any of it. _

"Those other ghosts are weak, Daniel," he smirked. "But, I, I am not. While they just use the body they overshadow, I latch on, and it'll take far more to get me to let go."

At that, every muscle in Tucker's body tensed, sweat appearing at his temple as his eyes blinked closed. His whole body seemed to be centered on one action, one internal conflict that took more strength than any workout or fight ever had before. His face was pained, his hands clenched around the handle of the gun, and for a moment, I let my power decrease.

His eyes opened again bright blue-green, that same fight that could only be Tucker, but I could see the struggle going on in them, the red glow that was trying to take control again. His eyes were locked on me, boring holes in my face as he ground out the message.

His voice was strained, pain evident and anger even stronger. "Just… beat him… Danny."

His muscles relaxed, the pained expression slipping off his face to change to one of pure anger and powerful smugness. His eyes, they glowed crimson red.

"You insolent child! You cannot beat me!" Vlad's voice once again poured from Tucker's throat, and this time I wondered if Tucker could hear him.

Those glowing red eyes turned back to me, something like victory in his gaze. "Your friend is strong, Daniel, but not strong enough."

I didn't need the flickering light to know that the bright green energy that was being condensed in my palms was changing into white-green flames. I could feel the fire lick its way across my fingers, up my arms. The power that radiated off cast an odd, dangerous glow to the surrounding area. He had no idea how strong Tucker was. He had no idea. Just because he could take over his body, just because he could seize his mind, didn't mean he wasn't strong.

Vlad clucked his tongue, something that should have been odd coming from my friend, but just made me madder than I already was. Which was saying something.

"You shouldn't harm your friends, Daniel. You start doing that, it won't be long before they start betraying you," he smiled, and the hand that wasn't latched onto the gun crackled with pink energy.

More shuffling behind me, more scared, ragged breathing, and I don't know if I want it to mean that Mom's standing firmly in front of Danielle or if I want her to phase them through the walls.

Footsteps on the stairs. I don't know who it is, can't tell without taking my attention off of Vlad, and I can't do that right now. A part of me hopes that it's Sam, and another wishes she was as far away as possible. Even so, I can't look away long enough to find out, and I keep my eyes on his face.

The gun's whirring is louder, and I can see the energy building up at the back of the barrel. I don't know if I'm more afraid of the gun or the pink energy crackling in his palms. Or what that pink energy's doing to Tucker's hands.

Like last time, his body abruptly tensed, his eyes rolling back and shutting. His body tensed, his teeth clenched, and the power in his palm flickered out as the gun in his other hand clattered to the floor. "Just… get him… out of me!"

His voice was pained, like this fight was shooting pain straight through him.

Maybe it was.

I've never wanted to kill Vlad more than I did in that moment.

Almost as soon as the words left his lips, the pained expression fled. His eyes opened to reveal the crimson red that we were fighting against and his body reverted to the smug, aggressive stance it was before Tucker had taken control. He kicked the fallen gun out of the way as his hands lit up with red-pink energy.

The malicious laughter was back, that sick smirk marring his face again as his crimson eyes sparkling with evil glee. "You're friend's ability to fight back is cute, Daniel, but he is nowhere near strong enough to defeat me."

I felt the something in me snap, something borne from anger and hate and want for revenge. This was the person that had stolen my family, tortured Dani, and was now taking control of my friend. I felt my eyes glow brighter, felt the energy burn hotter, and the only thing I could think of was that I hoped Tucker would forgive me.

I lunged forward, dodging the brilliant red-pink energy he shot my way, and blasted the green fire at his chest. Even as the power vacated my hands, I turned them intangible, plunging them into Tucker's scalded torso and attempting to latch onto Vlad. Before I could marvel at the fact that my fingers weren't catching onto Vlad, his fingers were clenching around my throat.

"It would be such a shame for your friend to wake up and realize it was his hands that strangled you, don't you think?" Vlad sneered, and I could feel the skin under his fingers bruising.

Before I could even think of what it would do to Tucker, I kicked out, using some of my super-strength to catch him right under his ribs. Sucking in air as he let go, I flung myself backward. Flying as I rolled backward in the air, I came up to face him.

And almost fell out of the air.

His clothes were smoking, the skin under the burnt fabric a burnt red, and his fingers were red and raw. I was glad that his shirt wasn't torn enough so that I could see the blue-black bruise that I was sure was forming on his skin under his ribs. It was his face that really set me off. Instead of pained, the crimson eyes were full of malicious glee behind the smoke that was rising. His lips were curled into a smirk that sent chills down my spine.

Vlad's eyes lit up and sparkled, something that scared me more than I was ever willing to admit. "You'd better hope your little friend forgives you for this, Little Badger."

Without even turning himself invisible, he floated, intangible, out of Tucker's body. He smirked as I lurched forward in the air, and flew upward through the ceiling.

Instead of flying after him, I turned my eyes toward Tucker.

His blue-green eyes opened long enough for them to for them to cloud with pain before he collapsed in a heap on the floor.


	9. Watermarks and Mothers

A/N- You guys. Are. Amazing. Like seriously. This story would not be what it is without you.

Writing this chapter made me happy. I really hope reading this chapter will make you happy. Honestly, it didn't go as I had planned, but this route is infinitely happier than the first, and I think it shows a bit more about the characters than the angst would have. I hope you enjoy this.

I want to thank my wonderful beta's, Icedragon19 and Pheek, for being amazing, like always, and helping me make this story what it is.

* * *

If you recognize it, I probably don't own it. If I did, you would have seen a whole lot more of Dani in the show.

* * *

Dani

* * *

My head spun with the double image, the past like a watermark on the present. Tucker's pained face swam behind flashes of metal, his burned skin a red background to crimson pain. Danny's figure lunged forward, grabbing onto Tucker's arms as a remembered Vlad flew at me, the phantom pain already spreading across now-healing skin. Voices yell, commanding and quick and scared, but the only thing I can really hear is laughter, loud and cruel and cold.

I stayed like that for what could have been minutes or hours; stuck in a haze in-between this worry and remembered pain. I stared as Maddie let me sink to the floor against the wall, shaking my wrists against binds that weren't there. I feel my muscles tense as the flash of scissors cutting charred clothing turned into the flash of a blade.

I didn't notice Danny's face until he was right in front of me, hands on my arms and shaking me lightly. I recoiled, seeing Vlad's face flash in front of his as he said something that I couldn't hear, pain arching through my body as I slammed into the metal wall behind me. His hands didn't leave; instead they were sliding up and down my arms soothingly, trying and succeeding (barely) in bringing me back from the images flashing across my vision. Every inch of my skin was alive with sharp feeling, my mind was racing with faster than light, my hands shook with the nervous energy that was still begging me to flee, but I was thankfully, blessedly in the present.

"You with me?" His voice was soft, but I could hear the worry and the pain behind that thin mask.

I blinked away the memories, shaking hands clenching against… something, and nodded, not trusting my voice in the slightest.

I was with him. Safe. _You're safe, Dani. Safe._

He found me. _Vlad found me._

It took every ounce of willpower in my body to keep from shaking like a leaf. Images flashed like lightning; Tucker's face contorted in pain, Vlad's red eyes glaring out of his normally happy face, pain, cold and cruel laughter, it all added up to a create a mantra of _runrunrunrunrun. _ I opened my eyes, not aware that I'd blinked them closed, to find Danny's familiar green ones level with mine.

"You're safe, I promise." I swallowed down the boulder in my throat, nodding again. I was here, I was safe. Vlad wouldn't get me, not again.

Danny didn't break promises.

* * *

xXx

"Danny!" Maddie exclaimed, voice concerned and laced with amusement.

Stopping his grounded pacing—he'd been walking around the lab for nearly half an hour—with a jerk beside her, he glanced her way. "What?"

Her voice dropped to a whisper, presumably so that no one but Danny would hear, but I could hear her plainly anyway.

"You need to calm down."

Danny spluttered, blue eyes outraged, "Calm down?! You are seeing him, right? You're treating him for burns _I caused!_"

"And you're not doing him any favors wearing a hole in my floor. " Maddie snapped, and then her face softened. "Go and fly. Take Sam with you and go to the park. Find some poor ghost to fight. Let off some steam. Calm down. Tucker knows it's not your fault, he's not going to hold this against you."

At his rebellious expression, she sighed. "You're not doing Dani any favors either."

She evidently forgot that years on the run and ghost powers helped a person's hearing, but I wasn't going to burst her bubble, not when I could see the nervous energy beginning to calm in Danny's eyes, "She's not happy about this either, especially seeing Vlad again, but if she sees you angry it's going to bother her even more. She's not ready to face Vlad _and_ your anger."

The anger in his blue eyes dissolved a fraction, and he bit his lip.

Maddie smiled, her eyes soft as she clenched her hand over one of the bandages on Tucker's chest. "Go. We'll be fine. I think I can hold down the fort for just a little while."

He nodded, shooting me an apologetic look before he shot through the ceiling. I tried to send him a smile, but he was gone before my lips even twitched upward. I just hoped he realized that I understood more than anyone, and really, what was there to apologize for? I knew what flying could do to the nerves, and who was I to deny him that comfort?

I could go for a flight right about now, even if the memories _had_ retreated to the back of my mind. The nerves from seeing Vlad again hadn't calmed down, but I didn't really expect them too, not any time soon anyway. The fear that had frozen my nerves had faded, if only fractionally, leaving me emotionally drained and tired. The thought of sleep was welcome, and the chair I was in was comfortable, but I knew it wasn't a good idea. Even if I was okay now, I knew sleep would do nothing but produce memories, and I was happier being tired in the present than anywhere in the past.

Maddie's words snapped me out of my thoughts. "I have a feeling I'm going to regret telling him to take Sam to the park."

I would have been afraid had I not heard the hint of laughter in her words. I looked up to see her indigo eyes staring at me, sparkling with amusement and curiosity and something else that I couldn't quite place. I'm not sure how she managed to laugh with all this happening, but I had a feeling that it had something to do with having a son that came home bloodied more times than not, and, honestly, I was just a little bit jealous of her ability right now. She didn't look any less worried, but she wasn't frantic either. At least she was able to smile.

"I've done all I can for him now, we'll have to wait till he wakes up," she explained at my glance towards Tucker.

I nodded, leaning my head back against the chair I was sitting in. I couldn't squash the urge to fidget, and my hands found the bandages wrapped around my torso. I could already feel them healing, the ectoplasm in my blood-stream accelerating the process so that you could almost watch it. The bruises would be the first to go, the coloring disappearing as if nothing had ever been hurt, and eventually the only thing I would be left with would be scars.

And memories.

Maddie's hand swatting my fingers away from the bandages prevented my mind from traveling down that road, dragging me back to the lab and the present.

"You get this look on your face when you do that, just like Danny does when he's thinking way too much about something we all know he'd rather forget." She says, leaning forward and smoothing the bandages that I've managed to wrinkle.

The look on her face leaves me speechless, because for a woman I've been avoiding for nearly two years she looks so dang understanding. "I'm…"

"His clone," she smiles as she leans away, the bandage good as new, "I know. He told me about you, vaguely."

I don't really know why, but that makes me smile. There's something about her that just makes me… comfortable. Maybe it's the fact that she's not afraid of me, or maybe it's the way I know she's not going to try to hurt me, but that feeling's there and I'm not actually too keen to make it go away. Especially since the only other people I ever feel comfortable with—let alone safe with—are Danny and his friends.

She smiles back at me, and I can tell from her eyes she's relieved to see that little tugging at my lips.

"So," she starts as she settles herself in the chair beside me, "since the only things I really know about you are that you're my son's clone and that you go by Dani, do you care to fill me in?"

I stiffen, the smile freezing on my face, until I realize what she's asking. She doesn't want to know what happened, even though I can see she cares, she wants to know _me_.

"I don't know where to start…" I mumble, because really, where do you start when talking to the mom of the person you were based on?

The look on her face makes me think she can read minds, because _no one _should be that understanding without even knowing what you're thinking. "How 'bout you start with your name, considering the only thing I know you by is Dani?"

Thankful for the starting point, I jump at the question. At least it's something to talk about. "Danielle."

She raises an eyebrow, but I can't tell if it's from the fact that my name is extremely similar to her son's or from something I don't see. I ignore that little movement for her next question. "Last name?"

Surprisingly, the question doesn't hurt anymore, not like it used to when I actually cared about Vlad. I send her a dry look. "Masters isn't something I'd like to add to my name, thanks."

I'm expecting a sympathetic look, pity maybe, so the laugh she produces surprises me. It's loud and warm and accepting, and I can't help but giggle a little right along with her.

"I've yet to meet anyone that disagrees, darling," she laughs, and I feel something in me heal just a little bit. She's accepting me and easy to talk to and for the first time in what feels like forever I feel happy.

* * *

Tell me what you think?


	10. Only Blame the Guilty

A/N- It has taken way too long to get this one out, and I'm sorry. The end of school was, to put it mildly, terrible, and I'm sorry I didn't really have a lot of time to devote to this. But, it is finally here, so I hope you enjoy! =]

Warning- there is a small instance of language in this one, but I thought that it conveyed the emotion better than way. It is only one word, but I apologize if you are offended by this.

I want to give a huge thank you to IceDragon19 and Pheek for putting up with me through this and making it better, you guys are amazing. =]

* * *

If it looks familiar, it's highly likely I don't own it.

* * *

Danny

* * *

The last thing I saw before my sight was obscured was Dani's lips twitch upward, if only barely, but I still felt a wave of guilt wash over me as I flew into the kitchen. Shame welled in my chest, right along with the pain and the guilt and everything else that had my heart jumping at ten times its normal rate. My face burned, my hands shook, and every thought tried to lead me back down and to the lab, but I couldn't. I couldn't go back down there and look at Tucker's burned skin, at Dani's almost glazed, still frightened eyes. I couldn't make myself face it, not when my emotions were running this high and every new thing I saw made me feel even more guilty or angry than I already was.

So I flew upwards into the kitchen, and I let the invisibility drop as I looked around. I could almost pretend it was normal, almost, if not for the unnatural quiet and the image of Sam's stiff back. She's standing at the top of the stairs, ecto-gun strapped to her hip and muscles tense as she attempted to peer down the staircase.

Seeing her like that, tense but safe (alive, unhurt, _okay_) was the most wonderful sight in the entire world.

"Hey," I say as I float closer to her, wishing my voice wasn't nearly as worn and tight and strained as it was.

To her credit, she didn't even jump at my sudden appearance. She just turned around and looked at me, violet eyes bright and fierce. "Hey."

She glanced back at the staircase before looking back to me, her eyes searching and I knew there wasn't a thing I could hide from her; I didn't even try. All the walls that normally hide everything from the world melted away, and even though it almost _hurts_ to be this open, it's her and it's such a relief to be in front of someone I don't have to hide from, someone I don't have to be perfect for, that I feel like (for the first time since I saw Dani fall out of the sky) that this could, maybe, end okay. There's a recognition on her face that tells me she knows exactly how I'm feeling, why I'm here, and her face softens. Her lips tug into a faint smile, her eyes sparkling with a soft understanding, and she holds out her hands. Her voice is warm as she whispers, "Let's go fly."

This is why I love her.

I don't even hesitate as I intertwine our fingers, and we're in the air before I can get her in my arms. I let intangibility wash over us both and we fly straight through the wall and into the air beyond. It's warm outside, the kind of summer night that we would have been out in normally, the kind that would have promised smiles and laughter if it had been different.

But it is different, and I pull Sam closer to my chest as we race higher into the air, savoring the fact that she was safe and okay and _here. _Her thoughts seem to be running on the same tracks, because her fingers tighten around mine and her other arm winds itself more securely around my waist. Her hair is flying everywhere, in my face, whipping through the air, around her like a wild halo, and I can smell her spices and lavender scent even with the wind tearing through our lungs. We break the cloud line and I stop, letting us float and look down over the glittering city.

Maybe it's just what's happened lately, but it puts my mind at ease a little to know that she's with me. She's in my arms and in my sight and I _know _she's safe.

I feel her take a deep breath of the thin air around us and I look down to see her looking at me, wide eyes swirling with a warm emotion that makes my knees weak.

She tightens her grip on my hand and then unwinds her arm from around my waist, grabbing my other hand and floating in front of me, her body barely a centimeter from mine. Even though her eyes are warm—and they are, they're sparkling with something and it makes her whole face softer—her mouth is set in that persistent, expectant line that lets me know that she's going to say something, like it or not. So, instead of pulling her back into my arms and just assuring myself that she's still here and safe, I tighten my hold on her hands and wait for her to gather her thoughts.

She doesn't take long, and she doesn't disappoint. She sighs before she says, "It's not your fault, you know."

I glance down, noticing that the park wasn't very far from where we were floating in the air, and attempt to calm all the wrestling emotions before I attempt to answer her.

Because, honestly, it was my fault. I should have been there for her. I should have convinced her to stay with us. I should have just manned up and told them my secret. I should have protected her better. I should have never let him near enough to the house to get to Tucker, let alone Dani. I should have stayed with Dani. There were so, so many things I should have done, so many things that would have changed this, prevented it.

I shouldn't have had to hurt Tucker.

As much as it hurt to admit it, it was the truth. "It is, Sam, but I'm going to fix it."

I was. If it was last thing I did, I would fix this. Dani would never be alone. He'd never, ever get her again. I would fix this.

"Oh, Danny, it isn't. None of us blame you; Dani doesn't and Tucker won't. The only person here to blame is Vlad. And I know you will; there was never a doubt in my mind." Her words were soft, the wind almost ripping them away before I could comprehend what she was saying.

I could tell by her face that she could read my thoughts like an open book. She knew what I was thinking. She knew how much I blamed myself, and I know she can see the connections I'm making. She saw it, saw everything that I could have done, should have done, and she wasn't blaming. Her eyes were soft and warm, her expression more gentle than anyone would credit her for, but behind all that was the knowledge of what had happened, what went wrong, and she wasn't blaming me.

She can see every little thing, I can see that much in her eyes, and she doesn't blame me.

She laughs softly as I pull her into my arms, her arms going around my chest even as I hug her closer. I drop a kiss on the top of her head, all my senses almost overwhelmed by her presence, and a slight smile is hidden in her hair.

"I love you." I say, because it's true and needs to be said and I don't think I could have held it in if I had tried.

"I love you, too." She smiles up at me, her eyes all worry and happy and sad and warm.

Even if I blame myself enough for everyone, even if there was a thousand things I could've, should've, might've done, they don't blame me, and that's enough to take some of the pressing, breaking, smothering weight off my chest, even if it doesn't take it away completely.

I glance down, smiling slightly as we start to make the descent to the park below us.

* * *

Dani

* * *

"And it took him almost three hours to find his other boot! From what I heard from Sam, I'm glad I was long gone by the time he got back." I said, smiling as she laughed at the pleasant memory. It's so much better than the other, more recent ones. It helps, thinking of those happier moments.

"Oh, I'll bet his expression was priceless!" She laughs, her eyes sparkling like jewels. She's clearly not heard all of Danny's stories, probably for both his and her sanity, but it's been fun for both of us to share some of her son's (mis)adventures.

It's taken both our minds off of what's happened, which I can only consider a good thing. Under Maddie's constant care, Tucker slipped into a natural, deep sleep, his breathing deep and slow. His slow breathing and small, random movements had become background music to our quiet conversations. Our soft words and his quiet breathing had created a safe feeling to the lab, making the hard metal walls (so similar to Vlad's that every flash of light made me remember _something) _feel almost warm and welcoming.

A hoarse cough interrupted her laughter. Our eyes both snapped to Tucker, and Maddie was on her feet and by his side before he even stopped coughing. I leaned forward, wishing more than anything I could get up and be near him, but stopping as soon as I felt my cuts stretch. A small smile stretched itself over his burned lips. His voice was rough and raw, "It was. I was there, and it was priceless."

I smiled, a little bit of the worry I held slipping away as his eyes blinked open to reveal pained but glittering irises.

He tried to sit up, but against Maddie's gentle hands pushing him back down and the pain that was so clear in his eyes, he slumped back against the table with little resistance. He coughed once, and took a deep breath, his hands relaxing by his sides.

"Danny sure knows how to pack a punch," he said, his laughing voice both pained and joking.

I winced, hoping Danny will never hear what his friend just said. Maddie seemed to be thinking on the same lines I was, because the frown on her face wasn't just of worry.

"I'm going to go get you some pain medicine, and then we'll take another look at those burns, okay?" Maddie said, her voice tight and uncomfortable.

As her footsteps sounded up the stairs, Tucker turned his head to face me. He could obviously sense the tense atmosphere and his eyes were worried. "Where's Danny at, anyway?"

I could tell he wasn't just asking where Danny was, he was asking so much more than that. He was asking if everyone else was safe, if something else had happened. He was asking if there was an even more sinister reason for his friend not being at his bedside than just bad timing. I smiled, if only a little bit.

"He and Sam went flying, he was about to wear a trench in the lab floor," I said, and I hoped Tucker understood what else I hadn't said.

He sighed, clenching his eyes closed. I could just make out the whispered words he spoke to himself. "Why are you always so damn guilty!"

I laughed almost silently to myself, but it held no humor. He was right. Danny, no matter the situation, would always take all the blame for it. It didn't matter if he could have changed the outcome or not, the guilt would haunt him for weeks. Tucker understood that perfectly, even if he liked it about as much as I did.

"He took Sam with him, she'll talk some sense into him, at least," I said quietly, hoping it was true.

He looked back at me, lips pursed in a thin line. "Yeah, at least he has her with him."

And then he groaned, a small smile making its way onto his face. "I just hope they come back within a reasonable amount of time!"

He laughed, and I couldn't help but laugh a little bit with him. The last thing Maddie needed was to have to go find those two.

He tried to move again, but stopped before he got halfway through with the movement. His breathing hitched, his eyes clenched shut, and he slumped back onto the metal table, boneless. Knowing any movement on my part would be the opposite of beneficial for everyone, I was forced to stay put as he sucked in a whistling breath through his teeth.

"Tucker! Are you okay?" I asked, panic rising as I noticed his clenched fists and tense muscles.

I could tell he was forcing himself to relax; the muscles in his face were still as rigid as boards, but the rest of his body seemed to ease. "I'm… I'm good. Danny just… really knows what he's doing."

I winced. "You know, he feels absolutely terrible about this."

His voice grew quieter, softer. "I know. I know he does. He doesn't need to though. It isn't his fault Vlad's a crazed Fruitloop. He has nothing to feel guilty about. He got that idiot out of me, didn't he?"

He sighed, closing his eyes. "That's why he left, isn't it?"

There wasn't any point in lying to him, not when he would know about it later anyway. "It was… a large part of it. None of this could have been easy on any of you."

No, none of this could have been easy, especially on Danny. He would have seen this as his fault, would have thought it was something he could have prevented. I hadn't even said anything yet, either. I hadn't mentioned a word about how I _knew _without even a sliver of a _doubt_ that this was anything but his fault. I should have said something. I should have told him I didn't blame him. I should have said something before it got to this point.

"Hey, Dani." He said, drawing me out of my thoughts. "You can't go and blame this on yourself either. It's not your fault that idiot is after you."

I swallowed, opening my mouth to retort, but he beat me to it.

"No buts. No one's at fault here but Vlad's, crazed Fruitloop, 'kay?" He smiled, and even through the pain and the raw skin, I could tell he was telling the truth. He didn't blame me anymore than I blamed Danny for all this.

I took a deep breath, and for once, I didn't even notice the metallic scent of the lab. "Thanks, Tucker."

He grinned, "Anytime, Dani."

He moved a little bit, trying to get comfortable on the flat lab table. He looked back at me, that grin still in place, and yawned before saying, "Wake me up when your mom gets back with those meds, 'kay?"

His words sent a shock through me that I couldn't shake off until long after Maddie had come back.

* * *

And again, I'm sorry it took so long, but the next one should be out sooner. =]

Thoughts? Love it? Hate it?


	11. Inevitability

A/N- I'm really sorry that this took so long, but I do have some down time coming up, so maybe I'll get to write more frequently then. =] I really hope you like this one, as I loved writing it, even if it did kick my butt.

Warning!- This story is T+, and it comes out in this chapter. You have been forewarned.

Thanks to both IceDragon19 and Pheek for helping me with this one. I have no idea where this would be without you guys.

* * *

If it looks familiar, I probably don't own it.

* * *

It was inevitable, she knew that. The adrenaline had seeped slowly out of her body and her limbs felt it. She wasn't flying, she wasn't sitting in some tree, she wasn't in danger, and she wasn't _running._ The fact that she was _safe _had sent a burst of warm fire through her, warming her heart, her core, her very soul, and it was spreading through her limbs like syrup, warm and sweet. That warmth (something she hadn't felt in so, so long) and the safe feeling and the tired but happy smiles of everyone in the room (including the ruffled, dirt-smeared couple that had come flying through the ceiling into the room, guilt swimming in their eyes but small smiles on their faces when they saw her) was ever-so-slowly putting her to sleep.

She fought it, but the fingers carding through her hair and the constant yawns that broke the comfortable silence and the comfy chair won, and eventually her eyelids don't just droop but stayed shut and everyone else smiles because they know she deserves it.

None of the others leave, though, pulling out cots and laying down, but most of them don't sleep, just doze, and all of them are still sleepily focused on the girl whose quiet snores make them all think of Danny.

She doesn't know what triggers it this time. Last time it was the dagger, the other times were reminders, this time the only forewarning she has is a foreign feeling in her chest before her dreams of smiling faces and warm, safe feelings fade into memories and the fear and white-hot pain take over.

* * *

_Pain. Sharp, hot-cold agony. _

_Everywhere. _

_Her hands are clenched at her sides, fingernails biting half-moons into the gloves that he hadn't taken from her yet, and she's straining against the metal bonds that are tearing her wrists to pieces. Her toes curl, her ankles yanking in vain against the metal chains. _

_Chains. He had to use chains. _

_The incisions made on her chest are still partially open, green-red blood is spilling from the Y-shaped wound in sluggish streams. She can feel the air hit it, feel the semi-still blood dry on her skin and the rest run like crimson glue down her body. He'd left to get "bandages" like he hadn't brought them in the first place and now she's… she's…_

_She couldn't get mind off the __**wrongness**__ of it all. Of the pain of being ripped open. Of the pressure of someone's hands inside her chest. Of the feeling of foreign, metal objects touching and probing and cutting and __**breaking**__ her insides. It's everywhere in her head and it's swirling like storm clouds behind her eyelids and she can still __**feel**__ it. She can feel everything, the foreign pain, the intruding agony. There is no end or beginning or concept of time because it's tearing through her mind like a knife and the pain's making her think that, maybe, this might be what breaks her. What drives her insane. _

_She knows she's shaking. She knows there are tear tracks on her cheeks. She can't help any of it, though. She doesn't have enough dignity left to have the pride to care. _

_Even so, she won't let him win this. She won't. She __**can't.**_

_There's nothing she can __**do**__, though. The agony's ripping through her with the force of a hurricane and the only thing she can do is scream. And she does, she screams and screams and screams until she hoarse and she doesn't know if she's screaming from the pain or at Vlad or at the world. She tries to break away; she thrashes and kicks but nothing ever works, the only thing she accomplishes is to reopen the wound and quicken the pace of the sickly mixture running over her skin. _

_So she stops. She can't stop the shaking or the tears or the half-moons being cut into her palms or the bloody rings around her wrists and ankles, but the fight leaves her in a sudden rush that leaves her reeling. All the energy, all the will, all the __**fight **__leaves her and she doesn't have enough left to bring it back. _

_What is there to fight? She's alone. He left, leaving her with her thoughts and her pain and herself, and there's not another soul in this horror house._

* * *

The first thing she does when she wakes up is look down. There are scratch marks on her skin right on top of the thick, Y-shaped scar that she knows will never heal quite like the others have. Bright red and raw and painful, they stand out like neon signs over her ghostly pale (she laughs to herself, but it doesn't hold one wit of humor) skin. They don't surprise her. She knows she was clawing at her chest like she was trying to peel her skin off. But, just like the memories, she can't help that either. She laughs a little bit again, but it's as humorless as the last one and self-depreciating to go right along with it. She can't do anything about any of this.

That's when she notices the others; the hands hovering inches from her face, from the scar and the scratches. Their eyes scared and worried over dark circles and bags that show that they slept even less than she has. They're close, invading her personal space and hands almost on her skin.

She has to remind herself forcibly that she's safe, that she's not at Vlad's, that they're only invading her space because they're worried, not because they're going to hurt her. She has to relax all the muscles in her body and force her arms from being bared over her chest before she even thinks about looking back up. She takes a deep breath, trying to erase weeks (_years_) of tension before glancing back up at the group who has, blessedly, taken a couple steps back.

She doesn't blame them, not one bit, but she doesn't know if she's ready for that many layers of personal space to be broken so soon. So, well, she's extremely relieved that they've all backed up slightly.

Well, all except one of them, but she doesn't mind it nearly as much as she thought she would. Blue eyes (so much like hers, exactly like hers) stare at her, and they're swimming with guilt and worry and love and sadness and tears. She doesn't know what to do, doesn't know what to say to these people who took her in and love her and make her feel **safe. **She doesn't know how to deal with the sad, concerned eyes (they don't hold pity, they know that's not what she wants, what she needs), so she glances back at the person in front of her.

His eyes are what do her in. She takes one look at him (so worried, so guilty) and she does the only thing she can think to do.

Mindless of her injuries, of the pain, she throws herself at him, arms going around his neck and she can feel his around her waist. She's crying, really crying (about this, about everything) and she can't help that either. She's sobbing about the pain and the injustice and the fact that she knows as well as he does that now Vlad's coming for him and the memories still playing out behind her eyes, and she can only hear one thing.

"I know, Dani, I know." And his voice is thick with tears and guilt and sadness, but it's strong and she's safe.

She lets loose a few tears because of how foreign that warmth feels.

* * *

He can still feel the tears on his shirt, the damp patch of fabric on his shoulder that seems to weigh a ton. Her head is resting on the other one, falling asleep after her tears had run dry and her breathing had slowly evened and her eyes no longer held that trapped, terror-stricken darkness that made her pale blue eyes look almost black in their grief, even if they did hold that haunted, hunted look that made him clench his fists and tighten his hold on her.

It's like his very soul is on fire. The anger sweeping through him like a tidal wave and for a moment the only thing he can make out is the top of her head in front of the crimson-white haze that's blurring his vision. He didn't think he'd ever be this mad, angry enough to lose control, but here he is, barely holding back the plasma that wants to form in his palms, the rings attempting to form around his waist, the power building at the back of his throat, the urge to leave, to find him.

He can't though, so he just makes sure she's comfortable, his heart hurting seeing her position, curled up and defensive and hiding against his chest. She's always been so _strong. _They both were, both so hard-headed and stubborn and proud and had such hero-complexes (they could see that in each other, but never admitted to it themselves) that they only let the others see them in pain when it was strictly necessary, but now she's here and there are tear stains on her cheeks and his shirt and it's breaking his heart. She's not supposed to look like this, so haunted and hunted and hurt. She's not supposed to have these memories, whatever they are. She's not… She's not…

She shouldn't have to be afraid. Of _anything. _

He hears the others around him, the small rustling of fabric, the quiet buzz of chatter, but he tunes them out. He knows he shouldn't. He should be talking to them, apologizing, _something. _But he can't. He can't turn and talk to them with her barely asleep in his lap. He can't face Tucker when the plasma wants to build between his fingers. He can't.

He just can't.

He sighs and looks at the group of people in the lab. His mom is curled up in a chair, and he can see the worry lines around her eyes and mouth. He's not used to seeing her look this old (and she does look older, like the last few weeks have aged her years, and he feels so _guilty_ about it all); she's so full of life that she always looks young, but it's drained after today (Has it really only been a day?). Tucker's on the table, white bandages covering most of his body and Danny feels his heart twist painfully. The guilt combines with the anger and he almost thinks his heart will break beneath it all. Sam is leaning against the table Tucker's on with her legs curled up on a pull-away cot, dark circles under her bright eyes. He can hear his name when they speak, but it's their conversation and he won't break their privacy by asking.

But he doesn't miss it when they attempt to get his attention. "Hey, Danny?"

It's Tucker, and it takes all his will power to look him in the eyes, but he does (and he hopes he can see the guilt there, the sadness). "Yeah?"

Sam finishes the question for him, "How is she?"

He takes a deep breath, hoping this doesn't wake her up. "She's asleep, but..."

He hopes that, this time, her memories stay far, far away.

Sam sighs, but her eyes are softer than anyone outside of the room would give her credit for. "She's got you. Maybe that'll be enough to keep them away."

She doesn't have to say memories. She doesn't have to say that it won't always work. She doesn't have to say that he needs her as much as she needs him right now. She doesn't have to say any of it, they understand her. They knew what she was saying by the look in her eyes, the set to her jaw. Tucker doesn't say anything, and neither does Danny. They don't have to.

None of them delude themselves by saying it'll be alright. They respect one another much too much to lie like that.

It doesn't stop them from gravitating closer, though. The cot Danny had sunk into ends up beside Sam's beside the table that Tucker's lying on over all his blankets and pillows and cushions. Dani ends up with her head in Danny's lap and her legs tangled with Sam's. One of Danny's hands is running through Dani's hair and the other is intertwined with Sam's. Tucker's got one hand hanging over the edge of the table and it's resting on Sam's hair. When Danny turns to Tucker, the starts of apologies on his lips, Tucker waves him away with forgiveness in his eyes. Sam turns to them with a sleepy smile and ends up nodding off on Danny's shoulder.

And with the first rays of dawn breaking over the clouds many stories above them, the feeling seems just a bit lighter. Nothing's been fixed, nothing is okay, but the air has lost that bitter tang and they have each other. They know that Vlad's coming, but even the barely veiled terror can't take away the sense of family.


End file.
